Dr. Akihiro Ametani, a Professor Emeritus of Doshisha University, Kyoto, Japan, passed away on January 4, 2022. He was elevated to the IEEE Fellow status in 1992 “for contributions to the analysis of electrical transients in power systems” and became a Life Fellow in 2009. He made notable achievements in the field of power engineering. In particular, his distinguished achievements are the development of computational models including the frequency-dependent line model for electromagnetic transients (EMT) analysis and the development of line/cable constant calculation programs represented by the “CABLE CONSTANTS” of Electro-Magnetic Transients Program developed by the Bonneville Power Administration (BPA-EMTP, Portland, Oregon, USA) and “CABLE CONSTANTS/CABLE PARAMETERS” of Alternative Transients Program (ATP). He had greatly contributed to the development of the power engineering community.

Professor Ametani received the B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees from Doshisha University, Kyoto, Japan in 1966 and 1968 respectively, and the Ph.D. degree from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST) (present the University of Manchester), the U.K. in 1973. He became an Assistant Professor at Doshisha University in 1968 and started his career as an academic. From 1971, he was engaged in research on power system transients at the UMIST as a research assistant and a Ph.D. student of the late Professor Martin Wedepohl. From 1976 through 1982 and in 1987 and 1988, he was engaged in the development of EMTP at the BPA. Professor Ametani became an Associate Professor in 1976 and then a Full Professor in 1985 at Doshisha University, and a Professor Emeritus of Doshisha University in 2014. He served as a Visiting Professor for Ecole Polytechnique of Montreal, Canada from 2014 through 2018, and for the University of Manitoba, Canada from 2019.

Professor Ametani had the Fellow statuses of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and the Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan (IEEJ). He was a Distinguished Member of the Conseil International des Grands Reseaux Electriques (CIGRE, International Council on Large Electric Systems). In 2010, Professor Ametani was awarded the D.Sc. degree from the University of Manchester in recognition of his contribution to the field of power system transients. He was also deeply involved in the International Conference on Power System Transients (IPST) and served as the co-chairman for the Steering Committee of the IPST. He greatly contributed to the management of International Universities Power Engineering Conference (UPEC).

He authored or co-authored more than 150 international journal papers including IEEE and IEE (present IET) transaction papers. He published about 20 textbooks. Of them, “Cable System Transients – Theory, Modeling and Simulation (IEEE Press, Wiley, 2015) and “Electromagnetic Transients in Large HV Cable Networks (IET, 2021)” are truly appreciated in the world as standard guides for EMT analysis of cable systems and textbooks for engineers and researchers in the field of electrical engineering.

Professor Ametani was strongly dedicated to education, research and development, and other activities throughout his lifetime. His contributions to the IEEE PES continue to be sincerely appreciated. His absence will be keenly felt by the IEEE PES community for years to come.

May his soul rest in peace.

Naoto Nagaoka
Professor, Doshisha University, JAPAN

Shozo Sekioka
Professor, Shonan Institute of Technology, JAPAN

Hideki Motoyama
Associate Vice President, CRIEPI, JAPAN